Queensland Performing Arts Centre
December 2011

By Belinda Adams.

Queensland Ballet’s Swan Lake entertained Brisbane audiences throughout December with a modern take on the traditional classic.

This new adaptation is choreographed by François Klaus and set in 19th century Russia. Klaus tells the tale of a ballet-within-a-ballet as he spotlights a love story between Mathilde Kschessinska (Imperial Ballet) and a young prince Nicholas, while reflecting the original plot of Swan Lake. The tale begins with Mathilde in the ballet studio reflecting on the lost love of her prince and then follows her through the love triangle that ensues.

With this nontraditional revamp it was hard to believe that you are watching Swan Lake during Act I, however Act II and particularly III see more of the conventional Swan Lake tale emerge. Overall the story was a breath of fresh air that seemed to captivate and delight theatre goers, but was not overly suitable for children.

With such a wonderful opportunity to tell this unique Swan Lake story it was a shame that the dancing itself was technically lacking at times. It was immediately apparent that some the principal roles were filled by newcomers and there were a number of non-company members on stage.

Hao Bin’s move from his short four month stint as soloist to principal was unprecedented and carried a huge amount of pressure and attention. Hao portrayed his character with dignity and a majestic pride, while his dancing was slightly flawed in its execution. Technically he is a very talented dancer, however it may have served him well to remain a soloist for a longer period before leaping into the demanding principal role.

Rachel Walsh portrayed her character beautifully as always and has gained some confidence stepping into this role after missing the original run in 2008.

Other noteworthy dancers who caught the eye included Yu Hui for his powerful allegro, Teri Crilly for her sassy, cheeky and distinct performance and Gareth Belling for his exquisite pas de deux work.

A large part of the choreography was taken up by pas de deux by both the principals and corps. This was well executed and created a lovely sense of unity among the leading roles.

After closely watching the corps dance together it was evident that there was a mix of company members, Professional Year and School of Excellence students on stage. They worked hard and performed nicely but some spacing, unity and technique issues prevented them from working together as the synchronized backdrop to the principals and soloists.

I give credit to Graham Maclean (Set Design) and David Walters (Lighting Design) for creating a professional and pristine production.

The Queensland Ballet succeeded in performing a distinct adaptation of the classic Swan Lake that charmed audiences and introduced them to ballet for 2012 and beyond.

By Grace Edwards

Creating a new ballet is never easy, but when that ballet is King Arthur and the Tales of Camelot, the pressure is on. Inspired by the popular novel, The Mists of Avalon, the Queensland Ballet’s latest work is the result of Artistic Director François Klaus’ ongoing fascination with the Arthurian legend— a passion he discovered whilst creating the lead role of King Arthur in John Neumeier’s King Arthur’s Saga during his time working with the Hamburg Ballet.  Klaus let Dance Informa’s Grace Edwards in on the preparations behind staging such an iconic story.

In this production, both choreography and poetic text are used to make the epic plot easier to follow. “Dance is very adept at showing emotions, so with that you can build quite a lot,” says Klaus. “The problem in dance, however, is that you cannot say, you know, ‘This man is my brother.’ Ultimately, the majority of people respond better to dance if they understand the context in which it happens, and that is the key to trying to make ballet mean something.”

A ballet means nothing, of course, without its dancers. Upcoming performances will feature Rachel Walsh as Queen Guinevere and Keian Langdon as King Arthur. The role of King Arthur’s half-sister, pivotal in Klaus’ version, will be performed by Claire Morehan. Responsible for delivering the text in his role as Merlin is former Expressions Dance Company member Dan Crestani, whose dramatic portrayals of characters such as Richard III brought him to Klaus’ attention.

Queensland Ballet Artistic Director Francois Klaus and Head of Wardrobe and Resident Designer Noelene Hill

Klaus admits to a fairly personal casting process, with strong ideas about who will perform which roles from the beginning. “Not that you should put the dancers in a box”, he warns. “But when you have your own company you tend to shape it over the years, to a large extent, to your taste. You know how you like people to dance and when you are the chief choreographer, you tend to associate characters with some of the people you already have in the company because you know that they fit those roles very well.”

Other aspects of the creative process, nonetheless, require teamwork. “We work quite closely together really,” reflects Klaus. “There’s David Walters, our lighting designer. David is extremely good at working out the reasons and motivations of the plot. I know he is technically there for the lighting design, but he is really good dramatically as well. And my wife Robyn – we make a trio that work really closely together right from the beginning. And then of course the designer for the set will be present, not as intensively, but of course he is the one who has to realise optically how the ballet is going to be presented.”

“Musically, I work quite closely with Greg Young, who is there to conduct, but at the same time we have a relatively small orchestra so he arranges the music for that ensemble. He’s a very good pianist as well. He even has to compose for some parts or elements of the ballets sometimes. So yes, that’s how you assemble the puzzle!”

With so many parts of the jigsaw to juggle, it becomes difficult to measure the time commitment involved in creating a ballet. “In the studio with the dancers I usually work quickly – it is easier for me because I’m more aware of what I’m doing. If I hesitate too much, I find it difficult to keep inspired. So on a good day I work quickly. But the preparation period before you enter the studio with dancers, is what takes a long time.”

“Like right now I’m reading material for something I’m going to do in a year and a half. But that’s not really like work, you just read books and have things in the back of your mind. It’s not intensive work, but it’s background and once you have that you can get more practical and see what you want to do with it.”

So how does one know when a ballet is complete? For Klaus, the answer is never.  “I will always modify my ballets. Some you are really happy with right away and you may hardly touch, though others you may feel you have to work at again and again as you feel you can do better. You know, sometimes a very small change can make quite a difference, because a lot of it has to do with timing and speed.”

King Arthur, Klaus admits, falls into the latter category. “I think it is one I have had to work on quite a lot,” he says. “I did an attempt a few years ago and I just feel that now, I have the company capable of doing it.” Soon enough, the Queensland Ballet will have the opportunity to prove it.

Queensland Ballet presents King Arthur and the Tales of Camelot at the Playhouse, QPAC, 15 – 29 October. For more information on the production, visit queenslandballet.com.au.
Bookings qtix 136 246 or qpac.com.au